English Service - Rundu

The month of September began with Don traveling quickly to Rundu on the 3rd.  Jan de Beer, the pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church in Rundu, has led the congregation to sponsor an English worship service.  He would like native English speakers to preach every Sunday, but that isn't going to be possible.  Don will support the work there when he can though things don't look probable for most of the rest of this calendar year.

Kenya Leadership Conference

Well, we now know that Don is a ENTJ with a high need for control and a high desire for affection.  Lots of other fun facts emerged at a conference called "Foundations of Leadership" sponsored by the International Mission Board's International Centre for Excellence in Leadership.  This Centre, headed by Dr. Ben Sells, is dedicated to providing training in leadership among IMB personnel.  (Don met Ben in 1997 in Pretoria at the Global Consultation on World Evangelization.  At that time he was President of William Carey International University in California, a school connected with Dr. Ralph Winter's US Center for World Mission.)

The conference was held at the Brakenhurst Conference Center in Limuru where we were based in 1993.  It was special to be back there and to see colleagues that we haven't seen in a number of years.

Prayer Retreat

We traveled to South Africa on 25 September to attend the multi-cluster prayer retreat for the Southeast Cluster (representing missionaries from the southeastern part of South Africa) and our own Angola Cluster.  The trip was complicated by Dirk's (our part Rottweiler) misadventures.  He had cut himself badly a couple of weeks before our trip.  Carol had taken him to the vet in Otjiwarango (90 miles away).  Later, when the vet brought him back, Dirk opened the stitches so --- back to the vet again!  We got him out of the vet on the Monday morning of our trip, took him to the SPCA for kennel services (by this time we were tempted to just leave him there) and went on to Windhoek to catch the plane.

The retreat took place at a site six hours south of Johannesburg called Sierra Ranch.  Really!  A western theme hotel in the South African countryside.  The first major event of the retreat?  A hayride to a fireside breakfast by a mountain stream.  It was great fun.  Dennis is pictured above with Grace Conard and Ila-Mae Deuck on his first ever hayride.

Another special treat was horseback riding for Dennis.  He got to ride a horse by himself after the hayride for a couple of minutes (while one of the workers led the horse) but later missionary uncle Scott Flowers took him out for an hour and 15 minute ride on Champagne,  a large, gray horse.  (Note proud papa watching from below!)

Visit with Conards

Mark and Stacey Conard (that's Conard, not Conrad!) are the newest members of the IMB Ngangela Team.  Currently they reside at Flat 15 on the grounds of the Baptist International Mission Center in Johannesburg while awaiting permission to enter Namibia.  Stacey has accepted the position of prayer coordinator for our team and you will be hearing much from her in the future about the needs among the vaNgangela.  Her twin, Stephanie Brooks, has agreed to be our stateside prayer coordinator.   Mark and Stacey have two girls, Grace (3) and Katie (2).  Dennis is sandwiched in age between the two -- but it also describes the condition he found himself in various times during the week!

We're Number 1!